channel
the
COCONUT GROVE SAILING CLUB
serving the community since 1945
March 2009
CGSC HOSTS AND RUNS GREAT ROLEX MIAMI OLYMPIC CLASSES REGATTA
T
his year’s Miami Olympic Classes Regatta
was Monday through Friday, January 2630, with most classes having a final, “Medal
Race” on Saturday the 31st. A total of 444 sailors
from 41 countries competed on six
separate race circles spread across
Biscayne Bay. Many Olympic,
world and national champions were
spread through the fleet.
Channel. The 49ers shore base was the Miami
Rowing Club.
All in all, there were 23 Women’s boards from more
than a dozen countries, 34 Men’s boards from ten
countries, and 22 of the two-man
49ers representing eight countries.
This made for long days on the
water for our Race Committee –
around seven hours each day.
Coconut Grove Sailing Club’s
The 57 Board sailors and their
responsibilities were to host
boards, sails, etc. were well
the Men’s and Women’s RS:X
organized on shore at the Club.
sailboards on shore, and to run the
That was thanks to General
regatta for them on the water. In
Manager Hugh Stallings and his
addition, for the first time, CGSC’s
staff, especially Duane and his
Race Committee ran the Men’s 49er Class regatta, Dock Office staff along with Sailing Director Nick
as well. All this took place on our assigned racing Mansbach, and the sailors, themselves.
area, Alpha Circle, which was located NE of the
Quick Flash buoy on the north side of Dinner Key The Boards were to sail a trapezoid course,
continued on pg 8
COMMODORE’S REPORT
A
2008 - 2009
Flag Officers
Commodore................................Charlie Rahn
Vice Commodore..........Dr. Nicolaus Martens
Rear Commodore..........................Alyn Pruett
Secretary...........................Stefan Krumbiegel
Treasurer.............................Antonio Bejarano
Fleet Captain.................................Alyn Pruett
Fleet Chaplain ................Bishop C. Schofield
Fleet Surgeon ..............Dr. Nicolaus Martens
Board of Directors
Richard Crisler (09)
Jim Bigham (10)
David Holland (11)
Owen Brown (11)
Philip Messier (11)
Marc Buller, PC (09)
Jaime Ramon (09)
Francisco Calvet (10)
Ray Schnell (10)
Committee Chairpersons
Adult Sailing ..........................Richard Crisler
BBYRA Rep............................... David Kurtz
By-Laws................................ David Goldberg
C-Gulls..........Anita Hansen, Krisan Lamberti
Chamber of Commerce.................Alyn Pruett
Channel Editor......................Cherie Branning
Cruising&Rendezvous............... Janice Pruett
Entertainment.............................. Doug Hanks
Executive....................................Charlie Rahn
Finance................................Antonio Bejarano
Flying Scot Racing.................. Larry Whipple
Future Development.....................Marc Buller
House........................................ Nick Martens
IT Committee................................ Jack David
Laser Racing........................... Peter Branning
Marine Council.............................Rick Rahm
Marine Science Acad....................Alyn Pruett
Membership.................................. Dan Maher
Moorings.....................................Bill Beavers
Opti Racing.........................Antonio Bejarano
Orange Bowl Regatta............... Art Auwaerter
Pier 7 Rep..........Bill Braddon, Rob Quinlivan
Property.................................... Nick Martens
Protocol........................................Davit Kurtz
Public Relations............................Alyn Pruett
Race.......................................... Ron Rostorfer
Safety & Security.........................Marc Buller
Snipe Racing.......................Gonzalo Diaz, Sr.
Strip................................................. Bud Price
UM Sailing Coordinator.......... Charles Rahn
Webmaster............................... Hugh Stallings
Sailing Director..................... Nick Mansbach
Club Manager.......................... Hugh Stallings
Submit all articles and photos by the 10th
of each month to cebranning@bellsouth.net.
Cover Photo of a 49’er at the Miami Olympic
Class Regatta taken by Charles Branning.
Volume 64
2
Issue 9
t our January Board of Directors meeting
one of the major topics of discussion was
that the city was getting close to developing
the outer mooring field and they are advertising
and have a sign up list for those interested in
mooring a sail or power boat up to 40 feet in length.
The information can be found at the following
website: http://www.miamigov.com/marinas/
pages/marinas/dinnerkey_mooring.asp
One of the topics of the discussion was that the city’s brochure and
web page show a photo of the “inner” mooring field. Being leery of
ever expanding government, the board decided that since the State
has indicated to our attorneys that as a club requiring “membership’
they will grant us a waiver to use the submerged bottom lands for a
6% fee, it is time to take them up on the offer.
The next day I contacted our attorney Amanda Quirke at Tew Cardenas
and asked her to let the state government know that we would like to
move forward and accept the offer to lease the submerged land. At
the same time we requested Santiago Echemendia arrange a meeting
with city manager Pete Hernandez so that we could ask what the
intentions of the city are in regard to the mooring field, and to explain
what a large percentage of our annual budget is represented by the
revenue from the moorings.
After having two meetings scheduled and then postponed a few
hours before the scheduled time, I was finally able to meet with Mr.
Hernandez on Thursday February 5th. Since Vice Commodore Martens
had already cancelled patient appointments twice in the week, he
was unable to join Santiago, Amanda and I at the meeting.
An interesting thing happened prior to the meeting. Santiago &
Amada had a meeting scheduled with Mr. Hernandez on a different
issue, a half hour prior to the CGSC meeting. I was present a half
hour early for the meeting, and after about 15 minutes the fifth person
that was to attend the meeting came to the waiting room. This was
Ms. Madeline Valdez, who is currently the acting director of asset
management, a department in charge of lease management and
property management. We had been dealing with Lori Bilberry for
more than a year, but she is no longer with the city.
Ms. Valdez explained that the state is hounding the city with the
submerged land issues and the CGSC is one of the big problems. She
was kind enough to explain to me that her department projects over
$700k per year revenue from the soon to be installed 225 moorings
in the outer mooring field. After 2 or 3 years she expects to take over
the inner mooring field and projects revenues of over $300k per year
from the 110 boats that the state will allow them to moor there.
I spent some time explaining to Ms. Valdez the strides
that CGSC has made in the last 5 years showing
the city government what advantages we bring to
the community. She indicated that she has never
been on the water to see the outer mooring field,
so I explained that many of the boats currently out
there are derelict vessels that will not be ready to pay
the city for a mooring, combined with the fact that
the current economic climate has boat companies
shutting down on a weekly basis. I indicated that
it might not be that easy for the city to fill the 225
moorings.
Finally we were brought into the manager’s office,
and our very astute attorney Mr. Echemendia
explained that the state is receptive to giving CGSC
a waiver to lease the submerged bottom land.
Mr. Hernandez said if the waiver is granted then
CGSC should be able to enter into a management
agreement with the city that will allow us to operate
the mooring field into the future.
The issue of how many boats are allowed in our
mooring field will become a navigation issue with the
Army Corp of Engineers, since there are currently no
state laws governing the layout of mooring fields.
I hope you are not too confused by all of this, but what I
believe it boils down to two things: First - we are being
very well represented by Tew Cardinas and that with
their guidance; we will get through the government
bureaucracy and preserve Coconut Grove Sailing
Club. Second – As government personnel change
we must continue to show them the great programs
that CGSC offers to the community, and the basic
need to have an affordable place for the sailors of
Miami to access Biscayne Bay.
Due to a work commitment, I will be involved in a
cruise ship refurbishment project that will have me
out of the country from March 12th until the middle of
May. I have informed the board of this commitment
a couple of months ago and have offered to resign
as commodore. The board felt I should not resign.
I have all the confidence in the world that Vice
Commodore Nick Martens and Rear Commodore
Alyn Pruett will keep things running smoothly. Except
for a 10 day transatlantic crossing, I should be able
to be in constant email and phone contact, so I will
be able to stay abreast and involved in the club
operations. If I had known of this project three years
ago, I would not have accepted the rear commodore
position, and apologize to all the members of the
club for my pending absence. Please remember
the club officers and board members are volunteers
and we all try to do the best we can.
Charles A. Rahn,Commodore
VICE COMMODORE’S REPORT
A
s we are now in peak sailing season i trust
everyone in enjoying the bay and their boats
with friends and family. The staff continues
to do a good job in keeping everything shipshape.
Projects currently are the hoist and the main dock
among others. Work weekend was a great success
thanks again to all to those who participated.
Now is the time to have work done on your boats that will
get everyone ready for yet another fun time watching the
hurricanes marching across the Atlantic or forming in the
Caribbean or the Bahamas. This is the best time of the
year to get those small projects started so your boat will
be ready for the upcoming hurricane season. Duane
and the staff are well on his way to complete the review
of the mooring fields once again. Ricky continues to
do a fine job in the kitchen and he led his staff to a
score of 100% good in the last
city inspection. Good work Ricky!
Bring family and friends to
enjoy the club! Biscayne Bay is
certainly the best bargain in town
for entertainment and fun during
these challenging economic
times, so use your boats the wind is free!
I will see you at our oasis on the bay. The Coconut Grove
Sailing Club.
Nick Martens, Vice Commodore
3
REAR COMMODORE’S REPORT
J
anuary was a busy and productive month for our youth
sailing programs. Our opti racers attended the Boomerang
Regatta hosted by the Lauderdale Yacht Club. Of course
the “boomerang” is named for the shape of its course which
is a difficult round-about pattern along and adjacent to the
intracoastal waterway – challenging in good wind and weather.
Unfortunately our sailors had to contend with little wind the
first day, then more current than wind the second day. In spite
of the lack of wind I had a great time watching the racing and
spending time with our “opti parents” on the first day of the
event – Saturday January 24th. The Lauderdale Yacht Club
is truly a great venue for this event – with a huge swimming
pool, restaurant, outdoor grille, and plenty of seawall from
which to watch the regatta - which took place just a few yards
off shore.
That event was also productive in that it got our leadership
team – including sailing director Nick Mansbach, coaches
Baird Lobree and Mike McHugh, youth racing co-chairs Gail
Pulsford and Antonio Bejarano and me, motivated to add
several important elements to our youth sailing program. As
you know from my previous articles our youth programs have
grown substantially this year and, as a result, we recognized
the need to improve our preparation and organization to
accommodate the larger groups we now have involved.
In response to that fact, we created a new “Code of Conduct”
for all our youth sailors. This document, based on research of
similar codes from other clubs, outlines appropriate conduct
for our participants – on the water, and ashore, and in regard
to their personal behavior at all times. As the introduction to
the code states:
“Sailing embodies many important life
lessons, including the life-long value of
physical fitness, the importance of knowledge
and intellectual curiosity, and the need for
respect in our relationship with others. The
{following} Code of Conduct is intended to
advance all of these qualities in our sailors
and their families”
The new code of conduct also
includes a signature page, where
each sailor and their parents will
sign, signifying their understanding
and agreement to abide by the code.
The code of conduct along with a
companion “Parent information”
sheet and “Equipment and Clothing
List” will better ensure that our
participants are well prepared for our program when they
join. The Code of Conduct and information sheets will be
presented to the parents and sailors at the outset of each of
our future Learn – to – sail and opti racing sessions. Look for
the Code and information for sailors and parents to appear
on our website in March.
In regard to adult sailing, I happened to run into Richard
Crisler the weekend of February 7/8 and a group in his adult
learn-to-sail program. As always they were a group eager to
learn the basics of sailing. However, this was an especially
“hearty” group braving the chilly and cloudy conditions. I was
told that, led by Richard who jumped in to demonstrate, they
did in fact complete the capsize drill in the chilly water. This
is a testament to the dedication of their instructor – Richard,
and to their own individual commitment to the CGSC program.
Hats off to these, our aspiring and dedicated sailors!
Also, it is time to put the CGSC Annual Rendezvous on your
calendars! My rendezvous committee, comprised of Joann
Pszenny, Captain Bill Braddon, Javier Prado, Doug Hanks,
Chiara Manton, Janice Pruett, and Adrienne Peters have
selected the weekend of May 1-3 for our annual rendezvous.
The rendezvous will be held at Elliott Key, starting the evening
of Friday May 1. We selected this weekend to avoid conflicts
with racing (the Miami- Key Largo Race is two weeks before)
and to encourage the families involved in our youth sailing
programs to join in the fun. Look for more information next
month. There will be plenty of fun for all manner of pirates,
wenches and mateys! ARRGH
See you at the Club and around the Bay
Alyn Pruett, Rear Commodore
SAVE THE DATE FOR THE CGSC
SPRING PIG ROAST!
Saturday, March 21st
5 to 9
Live Music
Great Food
Games for the Kids
Watch this space next month
for details!
4
JOIN the
CGSC
RACE COMMITTEE
----------------------------SERIOUS FUN!
---------------------
Contact Ron Rostorfer
954-401-5335
ronsailon@comcast.net
ADULT SAILING REPORT
In past years, the winter months with the holidays, regattas
and cool weather saw very limited activity in the adult training
activities. Not so recently, as we have altered our normal
scheduled classes to accommodate other activities, and other
than those reluctant to train in the cooler waters, our activities
have continued through the aforementioned period. Group
class sizes are down slightly during this period, but private
classes have been on the rise, especially for the keelboat
training.
In this last month we have had all the adult activities except
for the monthly Small Boat Clinic which was cancelled due
to a facilities issue. Weather has been a factor with some of
our weekly clinics, but our loyal participants understand and
just keep coming back the next week.
In addition to our regular classes, we hosted an all-day Basic
Sailing Clinic for UM hopeful sailors. We really enjoyed working
with these young novice sailors, and we were assisted by UM
student and club member, Nick Voss. Nick was especially
Ready to Launch
good with the coaching assistance, and we very much enjoyed
working with him. Special thanks to member Bruce Penrod who has come
forward lately to assist with our Sunfish training classes. Bruce
is pursuing his interest in becoming a certified US Sailing
instructor, and we encourage his efforts and appreciate his
volunteering to help with our current classes. Enhance your CGSC membership experience by volunteering
for our numerous committees. If you enjoy passing your sailing
knowledge on to others and enjoy meeting enthusiastic new
sailors, consider volunteering a small amount of your time to
our Adult Sailing Committee. Smiles Guaranteed! Contact
Richard Crisler at 305-342-4775 or crisler@mindspring.
com.
Fair Winds and Safe Sailing,
Richard Crisler, Adult Sailing Chairman
Reefed and checking before
departure.
Excitement and fun - first keelboat sail
Main reefed and single handing
practice.
Sunfish students ready for their
first group sail.
Thursday afternoon clinic.
First Sail...
5
2009 “TROFEO PERPETUO COMODORO MANUEL RASCO” Regatta,
Coconut Grove Sailing Club, Miami, Florida.
Snipe sailors from Massachusetts, Michigan, Maryland, New
Jersey, Jacksonville, Ft Lauderdale, and Miami gathered at
the CGSC on Saturday, February 7 and Sunday, February 8,
2009, for the 40th annual Rasco Regatta. This regatta honors
Manuel Rasco; late Commodore of the Miramar Yacht Club,
Habana, Cuba, whose effort and dedication to SNIPES will
never be forgotten.
On Saturday, the winds were from the NORTHEAST averaging
17 (15-20). Three races were sailed on Saturday, with Eric
Reinke and Bridget Creney winning the first, a windward/
leeward course. For the next two races, triangles were run.
Peter Commette and Meagan Place established tone for the
remainder of the regatta with two bullets, showing amazing
speed and seamanship.
Carmen and Old Man Diaz again hosted the lasagna dinner,
which was attended by almost everybody. The group enjoyed
movies from the Old Man’s collection showing 1958 Cuban
National Championships and short clip of Comodoro Manuel
Rasco standing on his boat Shangri-La. Peter Commette has
seen this movie many, many times and Pete still asks for it.
There was a short discussion about Dr. Clemente Inclan,
“El Maestro”, who the Old Man calls “The most gentleman
of all sailors I ever met!” He was well known by members
of the CGSC. His memory is still with us. Marvin Schenker
(our timer on RC for many years and many regattas) used to
race against “El Maestro” in PHRF and remembers what a
gentleman “El Maestro” was!
Sunday was beautiful with winds from the Northeast at 15 to
20 mph, averaging 17 mph. Two races were run on
Sunday. The first one was windward leeward and
the second one was a triangle. Pete and Meagan
continued the winning ways. Everyone finished tired
and happy. Greg Saldana of Michigan (formerly
of Massachusetts and Florida) exclaimed: “I am
refreshed by the sun and wind!”
10 to 15 minutes of finishing the previous race. Excellent!
Race Committee did an excellent job!
After the trophy presentation, we proceeded with our ritual
for this Regatta: LA BOMBA VA! (The BOMB goes; the
mix of champagne, wine and soda). Everybody singing LA
BOMBA VA! while the winners drank. The audience really
enjoyed it and made Peter Commette drink heavily from LA
BOMBA. We gave a little zip to Megan (Peter’s crew) since
she did not comply with the required age. We believe Peter
survived LA BOMBA, as well as the second and third place
skippers and crews
Our thanks to the participants and to CGSC and to Carmen Diaz
for the lasagna and to PRO Susan Walcutt and the excellent
CGSC Race Committee including: Barry Simmons, Betty
Vandenbosch, Bill Braddon, Dennis Jansma, Jaime Ramon,
James Blount, JoAn Mathieu, Jon Jansma, Karen Ryan-Young,
Kay Voss, Larry Whipple, Liz Balbin, Marvin Schenker, Vicky
Rosenbloom, and Will Pulsfords. Tondelayo and Sweet Lime
were the signal boats. SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!!!
Right, Winners Peter
Commette and Megan Place
with the Comodoro Rasco
Perpetual Trophy
Below, Past Commodore Marc
Buller presenting trophies to
third Place Eric Reinke and
Bridget Creney
All races finished downwind. Everybody was very
happy with this. Finishing downwind reduces the
waiting time. Subsequent races were started fast.
Race committee had plenty of time to reset the
course. In one occasion, the race started within
6
The winner Peter Commette drinks LA
BOMBA
Past Commodre of CGSC Marc Buller
presenting trophies to second place Hal
Gilreath and Clayton Dixon
PC Marc Buhler presents the first
place for Aicardi (Silver) Fleet to
Andy Cline and Machelle Morphew.
Right, the “Old Man” with Clayton Dixon as he prepares for the
LA BOMBA
XL ANNUAL “TROFEO PERPETUO COMODORO MANUEL
RASCO” Feb 8 and 9, 2009 SERIES SUMMARY
Pos Sail
Skipper/Crew
City
1
1 30741 Commette, Peter/ F
t
3
Place, Meagan
Lauderdale 2 30571 Gilreath, Hal/Dixon, Jacksonville
2
Clayton
3 30391 Reinke, Eric/Creney, A n n a p o l i s , 0.75
Bridget
MD
5
4 30362 Palacios, Carolina/ Miami
Padron, Rogelio
5 30743 S a l d a n a , G r e g / A n n A r b o r,
6
Schoenberg, Bill
MI
6 30378 Rios, Raul/Spina, Puerto Rico 9
Leandro
7 30404 Griffith, Lee/Varn, Surf City NJ
13
Merrill
8 28814 Vo s s , N i c k / H i l l , Miami
4
Jason
9 30658 Baker, Robin/Plitt, Miami
7
Janet
10 30089 K l e i n ,
A n d y / Winchester,
11
Morphew, Michelle MA
11 3036 D i a z , G o n z a l o / Miami
10
Caputi, Diego
12 24995 J a r a u t a , R a f a e l / Miami
15
Washburn, Katrina
13 29602 B r o e k e r, D o u g / Miami
12
Broeker, Melanie
14 30236 Vo ss, Ke n /Vo ss, Miami
8
Kay
15 28812 Reich, Bryan/Melin, Miami
14
Gina
16 30361 Rodriguez, Padro/ Miami
16/DNF
Rodriguez, Angel
Competitors and Race Committee group photo. Note:
Competitors with boats at the CRYC and the Sailing Center are
missing in the group photo
0.75
3/CNF
0.75
0.75
Total
Points Pos
8.25 1
2
5/CNF
4
2
15.00 2
7
5
5
4
21.75 3
5/CNF
8
2
3
23.00 4
8
4
6
7/CNF
31.00 5
5
6
7
6
33.00 6
8/CNF
7
3
7
38.00 7
4
2
10
11
8
9
45.00 9
12
10
12
8
53.00 10
11
12
9
12
54.00 11
13
11/CNF
10
11
60.00 12
14/DNF 14/DNF
11
10
61.00 13
2
9
3
4
5
17/DNS 17/DNS
44.00 8
14/DNF 17/DNS 17/DNS
65.00 14
14/DNF 15/CNF 17/DNS 17/DNS
77.00 15
14/DNF 14/DNF 17/DNS 17/DNS
78.00 16
Notes
(1)
Scoring System is Snipe Low Point 2001-2004
Information is provisional and subject to modification
Principal Race Officer: Susan Walcutt
7
continued from 1
necessitating three RC support boats. However, only
one of our Club Makos was available, so we were
two boats short. Fortunately, our friends at Biscayne
Bay YC answered our call with two boats and very
experienced owners and operators. Thanks again
to BBYC!
John Craig from San Francisco was our Principal
Race Officer. This was John’s third time in this role
for us, and it’s always a pleasure. Overall, there
were 25 different people on our Race Committee
throughout the week! Things went very well on the
water for the competitors and our Race Committee,
with USSailing expressing their thanks afterwards.
Sailing conditions for the first two days were excellent,
and all scheduled races were conducted. Both
classes are very exciting to watch. Wednesday’s
breeze was quite light. We got in one Men’s board
race, and a shortened course race for the Women.
The 49ers require less wind, and two races were
completed for them later in the day. Thursday’s breeze
was southerly, but still on the light side. Three 49er
races and two board races were sailed.
Friday dawned foggy, which burned off to sunshine
and a westerly breeze. Three races were sailed for
the 49ers completing their regatta with 14 of 15 races
sailed. But frontal activity was fast approaching. The
RC was monitoring this, and knew there would be a
squall and higher winds, but no thunder or lightning
was expected.
One board race had to be abandoned due to the wind
shifting dramatically to the NW in squall conditions.
8
Things steadied out with NW winds at 25 knots. The
board sailors reveled in the conditions! The following
Men’s start looked a bit like a demolition derby with
port and starboard tackers coming together on the
start line. The boards had an excellent final race,
and ended up with nine races sailed.
For both the boards classes and the 49ers, European
sailors dominated the regatta. Final standings appear
nearby in this issue.
Special thanks go to our CGSC Signal
Boat owners for the regatta. Charley
& Cherie Branning’s Upside handled
the first four days, while Bill Braddon’s
Tondelayo finished things up on Friday.
Also, special thanks to our support boat
owners and operators for the regatta:
Rick Bertold, Bruce Harper and Don
Poole from BBYC, former CGSC
members Bill and Donna Moriarty and
our own Art Auwaerter. Support boat
crews included Past Commodore Larry
Whipple, National Race Officer Bruce
Green from San Diego YC, Dennis Jansma,
Darren Stortz, Gina Melin, Glenn Kremer
and Dottie Rostorfer.
Our Signal Boat crew included PRO John
Craig, Race Chair Ron Rostorfer, Marvin
Schenker, Vicki Rosenbloom, Bernie Meier,
Jo Ann Mathieu, Karen Young, Barbara
Andress, Ken Bloemker and Kit Temple.
Ron Rostorfer
9
From the Manager . . .
For over 35 years, I have had the pleasure of working as
a manager in the Hospitality Industry. This has included
fine hotels such as Fairmont and Doubletree, personally
owned nightclubs, worked for fast food establishments
and managed multiple airport concessions. For the last
8 years I’ve managed member owned private clubs.
members cannot even get into the lot). For their space, both
the Don Q and Comodoro Rasco regattas pay a usage fee.
Over all these years, I’ve noted that private clubs are
founded and strive for a certain goal which exceeds
the bottom-line - the true pursuit of golf, the true
pursuit of tennis or in the case of the CGSC, the true
encouragement and pursuit of sailing - which we do very well.
We’ll talk more next month . . .
Over many years, a lot of private clubs forget what their original
goal was and simply become a social group with cheaper bar
and food prices. I’ve been there and witnessed this first hand. This is not always a bad transition, but I find it to be a
shame. Being a history buff, I find private clubs to be one
of the last active links to the past. The Golf Club, Country
Club or in our case Sailing Club is a place where many
current members recall their time as a youth member and
want to teach the original goals of the club to their children.
Unfortunately, we all know times have changed. Clubs
that were once a small house on a shore where the ladies
prepared weekly pot luck dinners over one stove in a
small galley have given way to larger venues requiring
paid staff, insurance, legal compliance - in short greater
cost. Neither the membership nor the hierarchy of any club
ever wants to breach this subject. Therefore, whenever
possible, the club looks for outside revenue sources.
In most cases (like a lodge hall) this is accomplished through
rental space for private events. However, if a club gains
recognition - regionally, nationally and internationally by living
up to it’s goals and commitment like the CGSC has done, we
are favored by many outside sailing concerns who request the
use of our facilities for their events. This includes everything
from the mooring field, to the lounge and the race committee. For the use of our facilities, they do provide payment. That
payment helps subsidize the club and all its members and
club programs, keeping yearly cost as low as possible to you.
I also realize that members should have certain privileges,
i.e.: parking, free access to the piers, etc and we
strive to maintain this. But in short, we hope you will
understand and embrace visiting sailors, welcome them
and possibly forego your parking privileges for a few
days each year, stepping aside to be gracious host.
I’m sincerely sorry that some members may have been faced
with a $3.00 parking charge on the circle during the Orange
Bowl or recent OCR regatta, but know that those two regattas
alone brought the club over $8,000.00 in usage fees for 9
days. The concession company that takes over about 75%
of the lot during the annual Coconut Grove Arts Festival also
pays a premium (even though we run reduced hours and
10
I respect membership and always try to put that first,
but also feel that events such as these benefit all the
members and assist with the betterment of the club.
Hugh
REGULATIONS OF PIERS AND BOAT
STORAGE FACILITIES
The following have been long standing rules
that have become abused. The dock
staff has been instructed to enforce them.
1) During busy times, the docks will be used
for loading, unloading and/or pump out only.
Tie up time will be limited to 30 minutes.
2) Boats may not be left tied to the dock overnight
without prior approval. Approval will be granted if
extenuating circumstances exist, however, permission
must first be obtained from the Moorings Chairperson
or Vice Commodore. If permission is not obtained,
offenders will be charged $20.00 per night.
3) Owners using their boats for charter may not use
CGSC facilities for any business purpose including
loading or unloading provisions for the charter or its
passengers or individuals chartering the vessel.
4) Members who use their own dinghies must keep
them in the dinghy racks. The south side of the pram
dock is for temporary use only by members and guest.
Members may only leave a dinghy at the dock while the
owner is on CGSC property. Bonafide tradesmen who
have provided proof of insurance and are serving the
CGSC members will be accomoditated at the dock.
5) Tradesmen or vendors shall not work on any members’
boats at the docks during Saturday, Sunday, a holiday
or Special Events.
6) Boats shall not be left (illegally stored) on the rack
or on the strip without prior consent from the General
Manager. Failure to make formal arrangements for
storage will result in a $25. a day charge and may result
in the removal of your vessel after 3 days.
Miami City
Commissioners
Visit CGSC
Our Club was honored recently by
a visit from two highly respected
City Commissioners; Joe Sanchez
and Thomas Regalado. Both have
expressed strong support for the
sailing activities of our club and its
importance to South Florida and the
City of Miami.
Racing Schedule – March - April, 2009
Thurs. – Sun., March 5-8
Sun. – Fri., March 8-13
Miami Grand Prix Race Week, Miami Beach
Star Bacardi Cup – Coral Reef YC
Fri. – Sun., March 13-15 Saturday, March 21
Saturday, March 28
Thursday, April 9
Fri. – Sat., April 10-11
Sunday, April 26
Saturday, May 2
BBYRA PHRF #4, Key Biscayne YC
BBYRA OD #5, Biscayne Bay YC
Rotary Spring Break Regatta -CGSC
SE Dinghy Championships - KBYC
Sat. – Sun., April 18-19
Saturday, April 25
Coral Cup Women’s Regatta - CGSC
Sunday, March 29
Saturday, April 18
Don Q Snipe Regatta – CGSC
Miami – Key Largo Race – Miami YC
Opti State Championships – CRYC
BBYRA PHRF #5 – BBYC Sunburn
BBYRA OD #5 – BBYC Sunburn
C-Gull Cup - CGSC
11
Seamanship Section: One Mistake Too Many
Disasters at sea are usually the result of cumulative errors
that cause a progressive downward spiral. One of the most
important seamanship skills is having the knowledge and skill
to interrupt the downward spiral of errors that convert a problem
into a disaster. This article discusses two deaths reported by
the British Maritime Safety Agency in its 2006 recreational
maritime death report.
The incidence of boating deaths is much lower in the UK than
in Florida which reflects both the number of boats in Florida and
the carelessness with which they are used. In 2006, in the UK
there were 28 deaths involving pleasure craft and only 5 involved
cruising sailboats. Two of the incidents illustrate the fact that
you usually have to do 3 or 4 stupid things to kill yourself in a
sailboat and that a potential problem ignored will surface to bite
you at the most inopportune time
Incident One: The new owner of a secondhand 30 ft coastal
cruiser had not sailed for 15 years so he hired a skipper to help
him deliver the boat to its new base about 100 sea miles away
(Error 1, never over estimate your own or the boat’s abilities.).
The boat had been sitting all winter, the check out of the boat
and its systems was superficial and no preventative maintenance
was performed (Error 2, mechanical problems ignored become
disasters at 4am.) The owner and skipper then left the Hamble
River on the Solent in winds of 25-35 knots with predicted gusts
to 40 knots. (Error 3, never leave a warm pub to go out on a
cold night in a spring gale.)They then left the sheltered waters
at dusk and motor sailed through the Needles Channel into
the English Channel with only a jib flying (Error 4, it is very
hard to go to weather with only a jib and hard to get a main
up in an emergency in heavy seas.) An hour later the engine
overheated and they sailed on under jib (Error 2 starts to bite
them.) The owner clipped on at the skipper’s insistence but the
skipper ignored his own good advice. (Error 5, always clip on
and wear a life jacket in bad weather and at night.) An hour later
the batteries started to fail (Error 2 bites again.) The sea state
deteriorated significantly as the tide turned and the gale drove
into the current. About 4am they were hit by a big wave and
the skipper was washed overboard (Errors 3 and 5 bite them.)
The owner then tried to turn the boat to pick up the skipper but
the boat could not go back to weather under jib alone (Error 4
bites.) The owner tried to start the engine but the battery was
dead (Error 2 bites again) The owner got off a Mayday but was
unable to give a position as the GPS had switched off because
of low batteries and then the radio failed (Error 2, bites again)
It took the rescue services 3 hours to find the boat, the skipper
was dead and the owner although hypothermic survived.
Incident Two: A crew of 4 older gentlemen with moderate
experience in a 35 foot sailboat was returning from Holland to
the river Humber in the UK a 180 mile open water trip across
the North Sea. The weather report was 25-35 knots gusting to
40 knots (see errors 1 & 3 above). They motor-sailed under jib
into deteriorating weather (see error 4.) By next morning they
were in a full gale and finally decided to put on their lifejackets
but not harnesses (see 3 and 5 above.) The seas were now
20 ft plus as the gale drove into the tide. The Skipper, fearing
for everyone’s safety got out a call to the Coast Guard which
was picked up by a nearby oil rig support vessel which headed
for the sailboat in order to standby. Shortly before the support
vessel got there the sailboat was knocked down and the 3 crew
in the cockpit, who were not clipped on, went overboard. (see
12
error 5 above.) One of the lifejackets failed to inflate and was
inflated by one of the other men in the water but the lifejacket
did not have crotch straps and it rode above the man’s head
and failed to keep his face above the waves (see article by me
in October Channel “buy a top class self inflating life jacket with
crotch straps” and error 5 above.) The man still in the boat tried
to call for help but the VHS quit (see error 2 above) Finally, 2 of
the men in the water were picked up and survived but the third
with the poor lifejacket died.
Conclusion: In both incidents a marginal crew took a marginal
boat out in marginal conditions and showed a total disregard
for basic seamanship and safety procedures…a recipe for
disaster. As conditions deteriorated they pressed on instead of
heaving-to and reevaluating their position and the conditions…
both skippers were destination driven and returning to port
might well have prevented the deaths. In England you just do
not go out when the weather map looks like this; 65 knot gusts
and 20 ft waves.
Both boats relied on engine and jib. I think this is a fundamental
error. Sloops need to be kept in balance as they progressively
reef down in bad weather. Sailboats are designed to sail and
they perform very badly under engine in big seas and high
winds…taking down the sails and motoring is a prescription
for disaster instead of being part of the sea the boat fights the
sea! I rarely get on a boat that has proper storm sails that can
handle 40 knots winds and 10-20 ft seas. A boat should have
a deep third reef in the main or a storm trysail and always carry
a storm jib. While the reports do not mention how the jibs were
reefed, in 40 knots they would have been reefed deeply which
puts the effort high on the forestay which increases the heeling
moment. However, to use these storm sails you have to rig the
boat properly and have the skills to deploy them properly in a
gale at 4 am. These skills are hard earned and in both these
incidents, it appears that neither the boats nor the skippers were
equipped to be out in gale conditions.
Both of the incident reports included the fact that the waves
that washed people overboard were caused by a gale driving
into a current or tidal stream…just the conditions you get in the
Gulf Stream in a northerly. So you can add error 6, failing to
predict how conditions will change when you get out of the bay
and wind and current interact. These incidents show how bad
judgment can be compounded by small errors and problems
that accumulate until the real disaster strikes. Good judgment,
preparation and good technique would have prevented the
two deaths and the $200 self inflating lifejacket with an integral
harness is cheap insurance.
Phil Kellett
30 Years Ago
As USA OPTI Worlds Team Coach and Team Leader, in 1979,
I talked Pan American Airways into providing for us roundtrip
1st Class Airfare, Miami to Bangkok, & accommodations for
the USA 5 man Sailing Team, 2 of whose members were my
son, Shawn Lobree, Captain of the Team, and his twin brother
Shawl Lobree, each age 13, representing Coconut Grove
Sailing Club, AND ALL OF OUR BOATS AND GEAR in heavy
custom made crates. We were about the 1st team to arrive
Thailand and I waved down a rusty truck on the highway and
negotiated a price to load the boats in the truck bed and haul
same, and us, the long distance from Bangkok to Pattaya,
there being NO scheduled transport available to Pattaya. I
sat in the cab on a wooden box, next to the driver and
the sailors road the whole way in the truck bed with the
crated boats and gear.
At Pattaya, I picked a choice bungalow for us all, still
some distance from the beach and the strand line. The
2nd day I decided to commandeer what seemed to be
the best location for our boats assembly area and spot
from which to make the handiest beach launch of the
boats into the surf. The crates were huge and extremely
heavy and I and the 5 boys could not lift and carry one
over the sand. There were hordes of Thai boys chittering
and chattering and swarming around us and with Pidgin
English ( Hollywood style ) and hand signals, I got 4
or 5 of the biggest Thai boys to heave to, with us, and
hoist a boat and crate and lurch forward in> the sand
to the spot I wanted, 50-100 yards ahead. The Thai
boys were> speaking Thai among themselves and our
collective efforts were entirely uncoordinated. In an
effort to get a rhythm going to our travail, I started humming
loudly “The Bridge on the River Kwai “theme song. Turned out
the Thai boys had seen the movie and joined in merrily. We
repeated this with each of the other 4 boats and got them all
lined up for assembly and rigging by the sailors that morning.
With well over 200 boats on the starting line, from all over the
world, we had a dandy Worlds Regatta Week and the USA
won First Place in the initial Miami Herald Worlds Team Trophy
Race. When they saw us thereafter, the Thai boys would shout
out, “USA NUMBER ONE, USA NUMBER ONE! “ )
Hal Lobree
Shawl Lobree #29 and Shawn Lobree #82
GALLEY NEWS
Tuesday Night
“Dollar Dogs & Pitcher Beer”
$1.00 Hot Dogs and all the fix’ins
plus pitcher beer from 6-9 pm. Donated sides
or condiments are always welcome!
($2 Tacos the first Tuesday of the month.)
“Pasta Wednesdays”
We offer a different Pasta dish each Wednesday
WEEKLY HOURS OF OPERATION
Monday & Tuesday - CLOSED
Tuesday - SOCIAL NIGHT 6-9 pm
Wednesday - Pasta Night 5-9 pm
Thursday & Friday
Lunch 11am ‘til 2 pm
Dinner 5 pm ‘til 9 pm
Saturday & Sunday
All Day 11am ‘til 9 pm
along with garlic bread for only $5.95!  Our regular
dinner menu will also be available.
Launch service 24/7
13
CLASSIFIEDS
Month 1
Like new 5hp Nissan engine. Has only been run about
a dozen times. $450 obo. Hank 305-667-3160 or 305-6070137.
Month 2
WANTED: Pram parts. Sail, boom and sprit plus rudder
and tiller. Contact Alan Westcott (850) 894-0627 or e-mail
westcottar@aol.com.
Month 3
Caribe 8 ft. RIB Dinghy, trailer and 8 HP Yamaha engine.
Like new. $2500. 305 519 1384.
For sale - 1991 Honda Nighthawk motorcycle, 250cc,
red, exc. Cond, well maintained new front tire and brake,
9,870 miles, $1500. 305.546.6727.
For Sale 28’-1974 Colombia Sloop- 2006 Yamaha 4-stroke
8 HP Outboard. AC/DC Power.2003- New Rigging-Roller
Furling and Windows. GPS/Plotter, Depth Finder, Knot
Meter, VHF Radio. And Wind Instrument. Good Condition,
Ready to Sail. Asking $12,000 or Best Offer. Call Dale at
305-798-2415.
PETER H. WENDSCHUH, PH.D., M.D., P.A.
Medical, Surgical and Cosmetic Dermatology
7330 S.W. 62nd Place
Suite 300
South Miami, FL 33143
Phone (305) 667-7831
WHAT’S NEW?
Tuesday Dollar Dogs remains a hit.
But, for a little variety, we’ll now
substitute
“TWO DOLLAR TACOS”
the 1st Tuesday of each month.
Have a Corona and yell Oley!
Anchor For Sale - 25 Pound Danforth Type, 100+ Foot Rode
W/chain, Exc. Cond., Ready For Use $100.
305.546.6727
SNIPES FOR SALE OR RENT: Miami Snipe Fleet #7
(Chartered in 1932) Fleet is willing to help the new members
to get fast and further develop their boat handling, tactical
and boat tuning skills. It is a boat for young and old! Call
Gonzalo Diaz, Sr. and join the Miami Snipe Fleet. 305-6670492 (best 8-10PM) Work: 305-702-8526 (best 4-6PM
Classified Advertising Policy Classified advertising is for club
members in good standing and is limited to personally owned
items that are for sale. Ads will be run for 3 months and then will
be dropped from the listing, unless the advertiser notifies the
Editor to renew for another 3 months. Classified ads should be
sent to cebranning@bellsouth.net. A classified ad can be pulled
at any time by calling the Editor at (305) 661-2322 or sending an
email to the above address.
Commercial Advertising is available for business use by calling
the Club Office at (305) 444-4571 to receive a copy of the rates
and a contract.
TOP TEN REASONS TO HAVE
L.B. CARPENTER
PREPARE YOUR TAXES:
1. You can apply the money you save by paying
less tax towards your Anderson-Two-SpeedSelf-Tailing-Stainless-Steel-Winch-Fund.
2. Time spent preparing taxes yourself better
spent revarnishing your brightwork.
3. Money saved on Accountant's fee can be
applied towards next year's haulout.
4. Do you see a pattern emerging here?
5. His office is right down the street from
West Marine.
6. Because he knows his business as well as you
know yours.
7. Because he knows the IRS agents as well as
you know the bartenders at the Taurus.
8. He actually enjoys preparing taxes -- do you?
9. Let him worry about your taxes -- his hair is
already grey.
10. All the other accountants in town
are powerboaters.
L.B. CARPENTER, CPA, MBA, MS Taxation
305-661-7729
LBBEATSIRS@AOL.COM
Boyer, Inc.
Underwater Maintenance
Mary Anne Boyer
President
(305) 445-8536
SERVING YOUR SAILS & CANVAS
NEEDS SINCE 1988
SAILS
• Computer
designed sails
• Specializing in
Performance Sails
CANVAS
• Custom Boat Tops
Biminis & Enclosures
• Cushions & Interiors
• Rush Service on
Sail Repairs and Canvas
(305) 668-5001
6986 S.W. 47th Street Miami, Florida 33155
E-mail: sailsandcanvas@earthlink.net
A FULL SERVICE RIGGING SHOP
WINTER SPECIALS ON ROPE
AND PARTS
MENTION THIS AD AND RECEIVE
40% OFF POLYESTER
DOUBLEBRAIDS UP TO 10mm (3/8”)
DECEMBER SPECIAL ON FACNOR AND HARKEN
FURLING EQUIPMENT. RECEIVE A 30% DISCOUNT
ON ORDERS PLACED BY 12/31/08.
SAILORS! WINTER WIND IS ON THE WAY,
HAVE YOUR RIG INSPECTED TODAY!
GIVE US A CALL TODAY FOR A QUOTE
3470 NW 7 STREET MIAMI FL 33125 (305)649-1540
www.riggingsystems.net
AEC
Animal Emergency Clinic, South
8429 SW 132nd Street
Miami, FL 33156
(305) 251-2096
Thomas Householder, D.V.M.
Medical Director
PRSRT STD
U.S.POSTAGE
PAID
MIAMI, FL
PERMIT NO. 461
2990 South Bayshore Drive Coconut Grove, FL 33133
Tel 305-444-4571
Fax 305-444-8959
www.CGSC.org
JOIN A 63-YEAR TRADITION!
The Coconut Grove Sailing Club, a not for profit organization is now accepting new members and has very
affordable mooring space for sailing vessels up to 41’ in length.
Moorings require Membership which allows you discounts on year round Adult and Children
sailing classes and programs all overseen by US Sailing certified staff Sailing director.
Mooring fees are only $8.00 per foot LOA and include 24/7/365 launch service, pump-out, lit marina and
overnight security service.  We also offer Showers, Ice, Vending a Restaurant and Lounge.  On top of all this,
the Coconut Grove Sailing Club is located in Historic Coconut Grove and offers sailors fast and easy access
to Biscayne Bay for whatever your sailing preference - cruising, racing, day sailing, family sailing... we have
it all. Select boats are also available for use by members and we offer many other social and recreational
benefits.
“Come Sail With Us”
Contact or come by the Coconut Grove Sailing Club at 2990 S. Bayshore Drive,
305-444-4571 www.cgsc.org or www.manager@cgsc.org
We’ll be happy to show you around and tell you more!